


sleepy times

by 101places



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: Academy Era, Angst, Episode: s03e02 Purpose in the Machine, F/M, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Kinda ?????? but like its a hopeful ending, Post-Episode: s01e06 FZZT, SHIELD Academy, but i wanted to add that tag to be safe dfhhdf, idk how you people tag your aos academy fanfics im so, idk what else to tag f.........., its like canon temp mcd just like Mentioned, oh wait fuck GENRES thats a thing people can tag huh, uhhhh lesse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-05
Updated: 2018-11-05
Packaged: 2019-08-19 04:24:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,543
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16527293
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/101places/pseuds/101places
Summary: 4 times FitzSimmons fell asleep together, and one time they didn't.





	sleepy times

**Author's Note:**

> uhhhh hi this is my first aos fanfic so uhh be nice to me ig fsdhsdfh anyway this is just some purely self-indulgent bs but i hope yall enjoy ! leave me a comment & some kudos if you like it & i will give you my soul (also if u wanna see anything written feel free to hmu)
> 
> anyway enjoy!!

_i._

 

The study session had been her idea. They’d been in the library for hours, going over their notes for class and discussing ideas for their independent research products- and it had been going _brilliantly_ , if she did say so herself. Ever since she’d first started working with Fitz, she’d found her ideas coming more easily, and while she’d never found work a _chore_ (quite to the contrary, actually), she was finding so much more enjoyment than she used to.

So when they were quietly, but firmly, reminded that the library had, in fact, closed half an hour ago, it just seemed like common sense to suggest they returned to one of their dorms.

He’d agreed after a couple of moment, and that had been that. This wasn’t the first time they’d returned to his dorm, anyway, so it really wasn’t a big deal.

Though… it _was_ the first time they’d returned to his dorm so late into the evening. It was also the first time they’d stayed awake for hours past what would be a reasonable time, ping-ponging ideas back and forth with barely a moment of silence or pause for breath.

At around 2am, Simmons thought that _maybe_ , just maybe, they should consider stopping.

At around 3am, Simmons decided that she _really_ didn’t want to stop any time soon.

At around 4am, Simmons’ eyes began to flutter closed despite her best efforts.

At around 5am, Simmons awoke with a jolt, unable to remember when, exactly, she had fallen asleep.

She sat up, and a blanket dropped down into her lap. She looked at it, blinking a few times in confusion as her tired brain tried to process how it had gotten there. It was only when she heard a quiet snore that she looked up and the pieces fit together in her mind.

 _Fitz_.

She must have dropped off, and he must’ve been trying to make her feel more comfortable. She felt a tug of fondness in her chest as she looked at her best friend, fast asleep on his chair a few feet away from her.

Quiet as a mouse, she stood up and draped the blanket over him in return. She watched him for a few moments, before shaking her head, gathering her things together, and sneaking out back to her own dorm.

When she got back in she collapsed onto her bed, a warm smile still present on her face.

 

_ii._

  


Today had been hell.

Absolute hell.

Arguably the worst day of his life to date hell.

He’d known, of course, that going into the field would be dangerous. He’d expected to be shot at, threatened, terrified at every turn- and, indeed, that’s what his experience of field-work had been so far. That’s what he’d signed up for, and while he wasn’t the most _eager_ to face the dangers, he could accept it.

What he hadn’t expected- what he couldn’t _accept_ \- was his best friend contracting an alien virus.

Was his best friend losing all hope.

Was his best friend throwing herself out of a plane.

She was safe now, of course. Back on the bus with barely a scratch to her. He knew that, she was right in the next pod, probably fast asleep by now, like he should be.

But every time he lay back and shut his eyes he just saw that _look_ on her face right before she fell, and _god_ , if he had to see that every time he tried to sleep, then there was no way he could sleep.

He tried everything he could think of to tire himself out further, to make it easier, to make that _damn_ image leave his mind, but nothing worked. Whenever he crawled back into bed she was right back there in his mind’s eyes, leaving him panicked and on the verge of tears and remembering all over again how close he’d come to losing her.

So, finally, at god-knows what time (it really was difficult to keep track of the time when in flight, he wasn’t even sure what time zone they were currently in), he decided that enough was enough, and snuck out of his pod.

The plan was to go to the kitchen, get something hot to drink, then hope for the best. Considering that it was the middle of the night, everyone else would be asleep. He’d be able to move about without being disturbed.

Or… so he’d thought. As he crossed over into the common area, he saw a familiar figure sat on the couch with her back to him.

“Simmons?” He whispered, but she didn’t react to his voice. Had she fallen asleep out here?

He took a few quiet steps closer, planning to just peak around and see whether she was awake or not, however, he should have known better than to rely on his depth perception in the dark, as his foot collided with the table leg with a dull _thud_ and he had to bite on his tongue to stop himself from letting out some rather inappropriate language.

Simmons jumped, turning her whole body to face him with wide eyes, relaxing after a moment when she realised who he was.

“Fitz? What are you doing up?” Despite the fact that she’d been the one to nearly die just a few hours ago, she was full of concern for him.

“Wh-- what am I?” Fitz spluttered, now crouched on the floor and massaging his throbbing toe, “What are you doing up? It’s, it’s late.”

She glanced down, fiddling idly with the hem of her shirt, before speaking with a strange tone that he hadn’t heard her use before. “I couldn’t sleep.”

He realised, suddenly, that _of course_ she couldn’t sleep. If he was haunted by what had nearly happened, then how the hell could she _not_ be?

“Me neither.” He admitted, straightening up.

She indicated to the space beside her on the couch, “You’re welcome to join me.”

“I, ah, don’t think that’s a good idea. It’s late. It… hm. If you don’t want to be alone, maybe you could sleep with me?” Pause. “Wait. I don’t mean- I just- I meant- It might be better than-”

She brought her hand to her mouth, trying to hide her laughter, but he couldn’t find it in himself to feel offended. He was glad she was still there to laugh at him.

“That might help.”

The two returned to his pod together. The bed wasn’t really made for more than one person, so they ended up laying with their heads on opposite ends, their legs bumping into each other in the middle.

Even when together, the pair were anxious, and immediately falling asleep wasn’t what either of them wanted. But as they talked quietly to each other, the familiarity calmed them, and eventually they managed to drift off to sleep together.

 

iii.  


Eyes shot open, and Simmons sat bolt upright, her fist holding a sharpened shard of wood tightly, to the point where she could feel the sting where it dug into her skin. But she couldn’t bring herself to care about the pain- she had to be ready. Had to be prepared to fight, no matter what came, if there was a monster waiting in the shadows, if It-

…

Wait.

This wasn’t…

Her gaze darted about the room.

This wasn’t the cave. This wasn’t the planet’s surface, either. This was… where was this?

She looked down. There was a blanket over her. She was in a bed. The room itself was warm, and she could feel a light breeze- air conditioning? Something about this room seemed familiar, and she tried to force the mind to arrange itself neatly so she could find how she knew it, remember where she was, so she could determine what to-

She found the other occupant of the room, and the events of the past few hours came back to her in a rush.

 _Home_.

Her hand, still grasping her weapon, dropped to her side as logic won over. She wouldn’t be needing that right now. She’d left that place behind, there was no monster hiding around the corner here.

( Or, well, there wasn’t _theoretically_. There was a small, nonsensical, fearful part of herself that was afraid that It had followed her here. She had to work on squashing that thought before it could get any louder )

She slipped out of the bed, her feet touching the ground gently. She could already feel her exhaustion catching back up with her, but if she was going to sleep, she didn’t want to do it alone. She took two steps, until she was stood right in front of Fitz, and looked him over.

He looked different, but what spoke to her louder than the light stubble across his face was the fact that this man had worked painstakingly to bring her home. The fact that he _had_ brought her home. The fact that all of that time, where she’d felt so terribly alone, she hadn’t really been.

She felt tears in her eyes, and took a breath to calm herself, before gently lowering herself onto the floor, her head resting on his leg.

The feeling of him under her helped to ground her to reality, to remind her that she was _here_ , that he’d done it. That she was home. And with that reminder in mind, she let her exhaustion pull her under again.  


_iiii._

 

He hadn’t been sure about this whole apartment thing, but not for the reasons that one might think.

He wasn’t afraid to commit to her, and the idea of living with her was certainly more attractive to him than it was off-putting. His reason for not wanting to move in together was a purely logical one, based on simple, factual things, like- um, _science_.

Right.

Fitz had been _cautious about_ (not _against_ ) moving in with Simmons because of science.

Namely, because he’d shared living quarters with her in sci-ops, and was _very aware_ of some of her living habits. Fitz loved Simmons with everything in him, and he loved most of her eccentricities, but there were some things that even he had to draw the line at.

The most significant one being-

“It’s only nine!” Fitz practically whined, standing in the doorway to their bedroom with a crestfallen expression.

“ _Fitz_ ,” Simmons spoke with that tone she used when she thought he was being an idiot, but didn’t want to hurt his feelings by saying so, “We have work tomorrow. We have to get up early.”

“But- it’s _nine_.”

“I know.” She spoke slowly, as if talking to a Daisy, “But Director Mace is very-”

“Jemma, if you love me you’ll stay awake longer.”

She looked like she was trying _very hard_ not to laugh at him. That was probably a good sign, he reasoned, quickly putting on his most successful pleading expression.

“.............”

“.........”

“Fine!” She huffed, then quickly continued before he could begin his celebrations, “ _But_ you have to be in bed in an hour, and I’m not going to stay up with you.”

“Got it!” He was already darting away from the bedroom, as if simply being in close proximity to it would make him have to go to sleep earlier.

 _Honestly_ , Simmons thought as she fondly rolled her eyes, _he’s like a child sometimes._

An hour passed and, as promised, Fitz crept into bed, careful not to disturb his sleeping girlfriend ( they’d been together for a while by now, but he still didn’t think he’d be getting used to the fact that Jemma Simmons was his _girlfriend_ anytime soon ).

Just as he settled down and was about to fall asleep, she shifted, rolling over so she was curled against his chest. He looked down at her, and though it was difficult to really see in the dark, he felt his heart melt at how peaceful she seemed.

Carefully, he brought his arms up, wrapping around her securely. His movement disturbed her slightly, and for a second he worried that he’d woken her, but all she did was smile slightly in her sleep.

Fitz shut his eyes, concentrating on the warmth of her body next to his, and the way their hearts beat in perfect synchrony.

Maybe this whole apartment thing wasn’t so bad after all, he thought as he drifted off to sleep.  


. + i

 

Over the past few days, Simmons’ life had shattered into hundreds of thousands of pieces. It was like someone had scooped out everything that gave her a will to go on, and left her as a hollow echo of who she had been before. It was like there was something missing, and every second that passed by, the feeling had grown stronger and stronger, until it was too powerful to just ignore.

Right now, as she lay in bed, and felt the cold, empty half beside her, she felt that she might just drown in it.

Then there was a knock at her door.

With a sigh, Simmons pulled herself up from her bed and opened the door, preparing herself to chastise whoever thought knocking on her door _right_ as she tried to get some sleep, but she wasn’t given a chance to even open her mouth before Daisy barged past her.

“Hello to you, too,” Simmons muttered, not trying to hide her annoyance.

Daisy crossed the room, taking a seat on the edge of Simmons bed, and kicked her shoes off. Simmons shut the door and approached her, crossing her arms over her chest and trying to make herself look as irritated as she felt. She wasn’t sure if she failed, or if Daisy just knew better than to be intimidated by her.

“Okay, look. I know things have been difficult. I know… I know nothing that’s happened over the past few months has been easy. Not on any of us. And I know that we have a lot that we need to talk about, and probably even more that we never want to have to think about again. But I also know that loss… even if it’s only temporary, isn’t something you can deal with alone.”

Simmons didn’t reply for a few long moments, and when she finally did, avoided making eye contact with Daisy, “...So why are you here?”

“To talk.” Daisy said, “Or not to talk. I don’t know. Anything you want- just as long as we can do it together.”

“Really, Daisy, now isn’t the time. I appreciate the offer, but I just want to sleep.”

Daisy grinned. “Okay! Sleeping it is then.”

She tossed her jacket off onto a pile on the floor, then climbed into Simmons’ large bed. After getting herself comfortable, she looked over to her friend with a smug smile. “You joining me?”

Simmons stayed silent, walking over to Daisy’s jacket and hanging it up neatly on the back of a chair. “Honestly…”

Despite her apparent annoyance, Simmons climbed into bed next to Daisy, and sent her a tired half-smile.

Her heart still felt empty, and her chest still felt hollow. But the other side of her bed was no longer cold, and she knew that it was only a matter of time before they found Fitz again. Maybe, she thought, she could rely on her friends.


End file.
